Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1887-12-22

Ths meeting az persons interested In the preserv-
alton OF the Chesapeake and Ohio canal as water
way, held In Cumberland Md, to-day, viii discuss
questions OF importance to every citizen OF this
District ''The general government" runs the
memorial on which the meeting Is called "as Wen
a. the state OF Maryland Is large stockholdef In
thts Internal waterway, which terminates In the
city OF Washington, ID. @. TO the government IL
Is q military necessity; the late war proved this
Deyond doubt on the line OF the upper Potomac
were fought the battles OF Balls Blur, Monocacy,
Harper's Ferry. Antietam, Falling Waters, Getfys-
burg North Mountain, Hancock, Kelly's Island
and many other places OF historical note too nu-
merous TO mention 1t Is highly valuable as
commercial avenue to western Maryland, and also
TO the states or portions thereof which border on
the upper Potomac and even southwestern Penn
sylyania has derived much benefit from the Chesa-
peake and Ohio canal"
IL Is hoped at this meeting to prepare an array
OF facts and figures which will induce Congress TO
appropriate Q sum sufficient to make certain
Inuch-needed improvements and repairs, and TO
stsve on the impending peril Of foreclosure
through the non-payment OF interest on the half
million OF repair bonds. This cloud upon the
property IL fruitful and continuing source OF In
jury TO is. II operates as a check upon the boat
men, who DO not care TO build or buy new boats
while the uncertainty lasts; the cramping Of the
resources OF the boatmen makes prompt delivery
80 doubtful that large contracts for coal transpor
tation, for instance, which they could otherwise
get are withheld from them, and their tolls which
might 20 TO swell the revenues Of the canal are
consequently not forthcoming.
The interest OF the District In the preservation
OF this waterway Is not confined TO the facilities
offered for coalcarriage. stone cement, lime,
wheat corn and other grains -four, meats, and i'm
merse quantities OF agricultural products Of all
kinds brought here on Its boats at rates which
keep down the prices OF fuel and provisions as no
other agency could The general government oe-
rives as much benefit from such cheapening In
fiuence as the private citizen. It's own wants are
large and the contracts IL makes for supplies are
favorable unfavorabs In direct ratio TO the cost
OF bringing them into the District. Even for CON-
modities produced at the very doors OF our home
market, the prices are kept down by competition
with the prices OF Western Maryland and lower
Pennsylvania through the low freight rates Of the
canal The danger, In trying 70 induce Congress
10 see this matter In It's broad economic aspect,
Is that the promoters OF all sorts Of outside canal
schemes Will resort 10 log rolling tactics or insist
in some way on binding up the various projects
with this one with the result OF crushing Its life
out.
some measure Of relief will be forced upon the
attention OF the Maryland legislature, whether
Congress be induced TO act or not. One plan Is to
have tae state assume the repair bonds as a part
OF It's stnking-fund; another Is 70 procure the
adoption Of a constitutional amendment empower
ing the state to protect It's works OF internal i'm
proyement, after which the legislature will be
asked To appropriate enough each year to keep
the canal In running order and out of debt
Meanwhile, President Baughman will try to
raise enough money TO make one OF the overdue
interest payments next month, and thus avert a
foreclosure till permanent help can be obtained
from either state, or nation, or both. His own
preference Il for aid from the general Govern
ment and. for reasons already cited, he has the
best OF logic his side. la his effort for tempo
rary relief, well as In his greater projects he
will undoubtedly ind himself bitterly antagonized
BY the railroad interests, who have fastened a
greedy eye upon the canal, and would
b glad TO see IL fail In its struggle for
rehabilitation They would by that means
sss nd Of dangerous rival, or have q chance to
buy the canal bodily for q song, and hold It for
thar own purposes; either to NIL 1t up and use IL
as the bed for rail line or 10 prevent any opposi.
ton line from getting possession OF It. What this
would mean, In the matter Of the price OF coal
alone, can be only vaguely guessed from the
statistics OF the Cumberland coal trade for the pre-
sent year, which show the output to have been
between three and four million tons and that the
canal took nearly three hundred thousand tons
OF this In spite OF its crippled and Inadequate re-
sources With q fresh lease OF life, there Is no
telling how much the canal could be made TO
handle, or how much further its competition would
which Il had TO let alone.